Congress Races to Avert Shutdown with Partial Funding Vote

The U.S. House of Representatives will vote on a bipartisan funding package this week. The goal is to prevent a partial government shutdown set to begin on March 2. This legislation would provide money for several federal agencies. These include departments for agriculture, transportation, and housing. Other government programs would also receive funding. Lawmakers face two shutdown deadlines. The first is March 2. The second, and larger, deadline is March 9 for remaining agencies. The upcoming vote is a short-term strategy. It aims to buy more time for Congress to agree on full-year spending bills. The Senate must also pass the package before President Joe Biden can sign it into law. A shutdown would furlough thousands of federal workers. It would also suspend many non-essential government services.